7 people have died in China after a hotel being used as a Coronavirus quarantine center collapsed on Saturday night
The Ministry of Emergency Management (MEM) of People’s Republic of China has said that 7 people have died after a hotel being used as a Coronavirus (COVID-19) quarantine center collapsed on Saturday night, i.e., March 7, 2020.
Located in South-Eastern China, the building housed 80 people when it came down. While 9 people were able to escape, 71 were trapped inside the building. Of these, 43 have been rescued and remaining 28 remain unaccounted. More than 1,000 firefighters of Fujian Fire Department were deployed for the rescue operation.
Speaking on the occasion, the squadron leader of the Quanzhou Armed Police Detachment’s Mobile Unit – Guo Yutuan said, “We are using life detection instruments to monitor signs of life and professional breaking-in tools to make forcible entries. We are trying our utmost to save trapped people.”
The 7-storey steel structure was built in 2003 and was converted into a hotel in 2018. The owner began renovating the first floor in January 2019. On Saturday evening around 7:00 p.m. local time, the workers at the site had called the owner and informed him that a pillar had become distorted during construction. The building collapsed a few minutes later. The building’s owner is in police custody now.
Separately, Italy has announced an unprecedented quarantine on its Northern Region of Lombardy and 15 Provinces, impacting some 16 million people, as it steps up efforts to tackle Europe’s largest outbreak of coronavirus.
The Prime Minister of Italy – Giuseppe Conte said, “For Lombardy and for the other northern provinces that I have listed there will be a ban for everybody to move in and out of these territories and also within the same territory.”
He further added, “Exceptions will be allowed only for proven professional needs, exceptional cases and health issues.”
The new measures will remain in place till April 3, 2020. Gyms, swimming pools, museums and ski resorts will all remain closed. Besides, religious and cultural events, weddings and funerals are also suspended. Although restaurants and cafes can open between 06:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. but customers must sit at least a metre apart. Italy witnessed its worst day on Saturday with 50 deaths in 24 hours. The number of confirmed cases jumped by more than 1,200 to 5,883 on Saturday.
Talking about people’s safety, Conte said, “We want to guarantee the health of our citizens. We understand that these measures will impose sacrifices, sometimes small and sometimes very big.”
The 15 other provinces where the measures are also applicable are Modena, Milan, Parma, Piacenza, Reggio Emilia, Rimini, Pesaro and Urbino, Alessandria, Asti, Novara, Verbano Cusio Ossola, Vercelli, Padua, Treviso and Venice.
Talking about the spread of COVID-19, Director-General of World Health Organisation (WHO) – Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus tweeted, “The global number of confirmed #COVID19 cases has surpassed 100,000 today. It’s a sobering moment but it’s also important to remember that this #coronavirus can be contained & the spread slowed. Facts & evidence support this Right pointing backhand index.”
Today for the first time 100 countries are reporting #COVID19 cases. This comes after the 🌍 reached 100,000 cases yesterday. While very serious, this should not discourage us. There are many things everyone, everywhere can and should do now. #coronavirushttps://t.co/7olb7FXEZ7
— Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (@DrTedros) March 8, 2020
Globally, more than 3,597 people have died of this COVID-19 and 1,05,049 have been infected. Of these 3,597 deaths, 3097 have happened in China, 233 in Italy, 145 in Iran, 50 in South Korea, 19 in the United States (U.S.), 16 in France, 8 in Spain, 7 in cruise ship Diamond Princess, 6 in Japan, 3 in Australia, 2 each in United Kingdom (U.K.), Hong Kong and Iraq and 1 each in Switzerland, Netherlands, Thailand, Taiwan, San Marino, Argentina and Philippines.
